Excavating or tunneling apparatus



March 3, 1931.

W. R. DEGENHARDT ET AL EXCAVATING 0R TUNNELING APPARATUS Filed Jan. 7. 1929 sheets-'sheet 1 Mamh 3y 1931 w. R. DEGENHARDT ET AL 1,795,108

EXCAVATING OR TUNNELING APPARATUS Filed Jan. '7. 1929 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 7.11.11 @am 3mi de wm w//lm w. R. DEGENHARDT E'r AL 1,795,108

March '3, 19317 EXCAVAIING 0R TUNNELING APPARATUS Filed Jan. 7. 1929 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 March 3, 1931, w. R. DEGENHARDT E1- AL 1,795,108,

EXCAVATING OR TUNNELING APPARATUS Filed Jan. 7. 1929 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 @Y 614mg Patented Mar. a, 1931 UNITED STATES PATENT oFFicE WILLIAM RUSSELL DEGENHARDT, F LONDON, AND ALLAN FRED DI: FBAINE, 0F WEMBLEY,` ENGLAND, ASSIGNORS TO THE FRANCOIS CEMENTATION COIPANY LIMITED, 0F DONCASTER, ENGLAND, A BRITISH `COMPANY EXCAVATING OR TUNNELIN G APPARATUS Application led January 7, 1929, Serial No. 330,899, and in Great Britain Jan-nary 9, 1828.

This invention relates `to excavating. or tunneling apparatus of the kind comprising an abrading tool or cutter-Which is movedv over the surface of the rock or other material to be excavated. In certain forms of such excavating or tunneling apparatus the tool or cutter is moved over the Whole face of the materialto be excavated to form a tunnel or shaftl but in the present invention the chief object is to fform a channel so as to leave a central core or part which is disintegrated by blasting cartridges or other suitable means.

According to the invention the abrading tool or cutter is Vmovably supported upon a guide rail or other member shaped to conform with the configuration of the channel to be produced and means are provided for moving the toolor cutter along the said guide rail as the abrading action progresses. The

.20 channel thus produced isolates the central portion or core of the material to be excavated either all the way round or over any desired part so that when the core is disintegrated by blasting cartridges the force of the explosion Willnot be transmitted to the rockor other material on the opposite side of the channel. This "result is particularly advantageous when a tunnel is :being formed under a river and when there is not a very great thickness of rock :or other material between the river bed and the tunnel, under which circumstances it is ,desirable to isolate the Vforce ofthe explosion ofthe blasting car-` tridges from atleast the upper part between the tunnel and the bed of the river.v In this case the channel `need not necessarily extend through more than a part of a circle, but` there may be circumstances in which it is desirable to make a channel extending o through a complete circle. Also although the channel will usually bearcuate or circular it may be of other suitable `shape according to the shape of the tunnel to be produced; for example it may be oval or rectangular (with rounded corners) or any part of either `of such shapes. A further advantage resulting from the employment of 4this :apparatus is that the portion ofthe gall ofthe tunnel produced by it is smooth, thereby facilitating the usual grouting operation as will hereinafter be described.

The aforesaid guide rail may be attached to'ring segments carried by the front surface of a suitable structure which maybe the last of the supportin rings for the portionof the tunnel already ormed. Bearing upon the outer and inner surfaces of this rail are roll ers carried .by a frame upon which the body of :the tool or cutter is mounted. The said frame may extend well to the rear where it is provided With another roller or other rollers for bearing against one or more of the supporting rings already placed in osition in the tunnel. The frame is move toand fro along the guide rail by any suitable means, such Vfor example as a yfixed motor ,operating upon the said frame through a Winch and cables connected to opposite sides of the frame. Alternatively the frame may carry the driving motor `Which would then operate to move the Vframe through the intermediary of members engaging with teeth or afriction rail carried by the guide rail or a part supporting it or connected thereto, The tool or cutter may be fed forward in any suitable manner as the Work progresses, `for example by making the body of the tool or cutter adjustable upon the frame so that the tool or cutter can be progressively advanced.l

In order that the said invention may be clearly understood and readily carried into effect, the same will novir be described more fully with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which z-f y Figure 1 is a sectional side elevation showing a constructional form of apparatus according to the invention in position in a tunnel,

Figure 2 is a Section taken approximately on the line 2, 2 of Figure 1 and viewed from the rear, l

Figure 3 .is a plan .of `the apparatus of Fig ure 1 removed from its supports in the tunnel,

Figure 4 isa smallscale face elevation of the tunnel with the apparatus in position,

Figures 5 and 6 are sectional elevations of a Vdetail hereinafter described,

Figure 7 is a planiview of another detail also hereinafter described,

Figures 8 is aside elevation showing'another constructional form of apparatus according to the invention in position in the tunnel, and

Figure 9 is a front elevation of Figure 8.

A is the abrading tool or cutter carried by a body A1 mounted upon a frame B having rollers B1, B1 bearing against the inner and outer surfaces of a guide rail C. As shown vthe apparatus is intended for the formation of a channel of arcuate shape at 'the upper portion of a tunnel and in this case the said guide lrail' C is also of'arcuate shape and is attached to ring segments C1 carried by one or more of the supporting rings C2, C2 for therportion of the tunnel already formed.

Referring to Figures l to 3 the guide rail C is attachedv to the front part of the last or foremost supporting ring C1 with suitable shock-absorbing material C5 interposed and similar material may be placed between the ringfsegments and the said supporting ring. The frame B is extended to the rear and'carries a roller B2 for bearing against the inner peripheries ofadjacent supporting rings as shown in .Figurev .1. Lugs B5, B3 on part of the' frame are connected to cables B4, B1 one of which passes directlyover a pulley B5 (Figure 4) at'one side'of the part rtunnel already formedwhilst the other cable passesv over this pulley after first passing over other pulleys B5, B6 at the other side. The saidV cables are disposed in guide grooves formed in the guide rail (which is of channel shape as shown in Figure l) and are operated by a winch driven by Va fixed motor B7 as shown in Figure 4. vMeans may be provided whereby this motor (or the shaft driven by it) is reversed either automaticallyor by hand as the lframe reaches each end of its travel.

The abrading tool A illustrated in Figures A1 towhich pulsating liquid is conveyed from a generator by a flexible pipe attached to an inlet A2 leading tothe interior of the-tool body.-k Two alternative inlets are shown in. Figure 3 `one at each side of the toolbody andthe one that is notV used `would be plugged in any suitable manner. In

this construction the tool A is fed forward asthe formation ofthe channel progresses,

by advancing the tool body A1 uponthe frame B and for this purpose a pillar A3 supporting the tool body iscarriedby a flanged block A1 'slidably engaging with the side members of the said frame. The said block is moved by` means of a screw A5 which engages ina screwthreaded hole in a transverse part of the frame and the head ofwhich is connected to the said block so as to bev free to rotate.l VTo take the` ythe rear part of the tool body and the other wedge A7V ismoved by means cfa screw A8 whichis carried by'lugs on a bracket A9 at tached to the frame and engages in a screw threaded hole in a lug A10 on the latter wedge. After the screw A5 previously mentioned has beenadj usted to move the blockforward, and the wedge A7 has been moved to take up the gap thereby formed, the said screw A5' is moved in the reverse direction to bring the block A4 slightly rearwards and thereby press the co-.operating surfaces of the wedges into firm contact. If.v desired suitable shock-absorbing material may be interposed between the rear surface of the wedge A7and the front surface of the adjacent supporting ring. The tool may also'be advanced by placing distance pieces ofV different lengths between the tool head and the operating part carried by the body. Figure 5 shows the tool head A con-v nected to the operating part AX and Figure 6 shows a distance piece a interposed between the head A and theV part Ax and suitably connected thereto, for example by pinspassing through holes therein or by a bayonet slot connection. This .method involves the removal and replacement ofthe tool head and to enable this to be eifectedthe pillar A5 may be moved about its Vaxis so` as to bring the tool head out of the channel that has already been formed. In this method the wedges A5, A7 can be dispensed with and replaced by a plain thrust block; or the Vadjustable wedge method can be used in conjunction'withthe said distance pieces ofdiflerent lengths which is the intention in theconstruction according Y to Figures lto 3. When long' distance pieces are in use'there is a considerable'overhang of the front portion ofthe tool, and to avoid the disadvantages resulting from thiswe may provide 4a yoke member-A0 (Figure 7) which is detachably connected to the tool body A1 and the front part of'which receives and supportsthe shank of the tool. head. i

- As the surface left by the tool after it has formed a channel is smooth -it is possible to effect the grouting operation by making thej ring segments C1 extend close to the surface of the tunnel alreadyformed as shown in Figure l and forcing the plastic cementor' concreteinto the annular space between the periphery of the supporting .rings serving to prevent the cement from escaping.A As an ad-l ditional precaution'again'st the escape of the fil illu

cement small bags of sand or other suitable material may be placed behind the extending portions of the ring segments.

The tool body may be made adjustable in a radial direction so as to vary, as required, the width of the annular space between the surface of the tunnel and the periphery of of the supporting rings. This adjustment may be effected as between the aforesaid frame and the tool body when the variation is intended to be only smalhbut in circumstances where other channels may be required in the face of the material to be excavated, at different radial distances from the centre of the tunnel, the tool body may be adjustably carried by a radially disposed arm which is supported in a similar manner to that above described in connection with the aforesaid frame B.

In the construction shown by Figures 8 and 8 the tool body A1 is carried by a platform D and is slidably disposed in a transverse hole in a trunnion Dl which is rotatably carried by a bracket Bs on the frame B. The said platform is connected by a link D2 to the bracket B3 and carries an arcuate rack D3 with which a pinion D4 on the bracket B8 co-operates. This pinion can be driven from a hands wheel D5 on the frame B through'a worm D6 and worm-wheel D7, the said hand-wheel being operated by a man in a seat D8 pivoted to the frame B as shown in Figure 9. By suitably choosing the position of the trunnion D1 in relation to the position of the pivotal connection between the link D2 and the part B8 (which pivotal connection represents the pivot about which the platform D rocks) the tool A can be caused to move forward as the work progresses, in an approximately straight line path parallel to the axis of the tunnel when the hand-wheel D5 is operated. The said platform also carries a generator D9 of usual construction for generating the pulsating liquid supplied to the interior of the tool body through a pipe (Z2, as well as an elecf tric motor D10 for driving this generator.

In the construction according to Figures' 8 and 9 the cable operation of the frame B as described with reference to Figures l to 4t is dispensed with by mounting an operating electric motor E on the frame B, this motor driving, through a worm E1 and worm wheel E2, a longitudinal shaft Ea (mounted in the frame B) provided at its ends with pinions E, EL meshing with rack teeth on arcuate guide rails C, C which are suitably carried by certain of the supporting rings C2, C2 and which in the construction shown are constituted by the inner flanges of H-section girders. Instead of the pinion and rack drive a. frictional drive could be provided in which case the pinions would be replaced by friction rollers and the rack teeth by a friction ring. The frame carries at each end nel.

rollers B2., Blfor bearing .against the inner and `outer surfaces of the guide rails, `and at its front end has further rollers BU, B bear ing against the front and rear surfaces ofthe front guide rail.

When the farme is driven positively (i. e. by cables as in Figures l to 4 or by rack and pinions as in Figures 8 and `9) a suitable friction clutch is preferably provided so that it will slip in the event of any great resistance being met with such as wouldfbe provided by falling rock or othermaterial becoming jammed in front ofthe frame B for the parts 4moving therewith, although to avoid this as much as possiblethe tool body may, `if desired, have on eachside a curved protecting shield.

Although we have shown and described the tool A as being of the percussive type it may be of the rotary or cutter type suitable for the purpose. i

`lVhat we `claim and4 desire to secure :by Letters Patent of :the United States is 1. Excavating or tunneling `apparatus .of the kind set forth, comprising an abrading tool or cutter, a guide rail or other member4 shaped to conform with the configuration of a channel to be produced by the tool or cutter in the face of the `tunnel or shaft, a structure supporting the portion of the tunnel or shaft already formed, meansv for carrying said guide rails or member yon said structure, and means for moving `the tool or `cutter along the lsaid guide rail as `the abrading action progresses.

. l2. Excavating or tunneling apparatus as in claim l, wherein a frame upon which the body of the tool or cutter is mountedis provided with rollers bearing upon the outer and inner surfaces of the guide rail.

3. Excavating or tunneling apparatus as in claim 1, wherein the guide rail is attached to ring segments carried by the front surface of'a suitable structure within the tun 4. Excavating or tunneling apparatus as in claim l, wherein the body of the `tool or cutter is mounted on a frame which is moved to and fro along the guide rail by `a fixed motor operating upon the said frame through a winch and cables connected to opposite sides of the frame.

5. Excavating or tunneling apparatus as 1n claim 1, wherein the body of the tool or cutter is mounted on a frame which is moved to and fro along the guide rail by means of a driving motor carried by the said frame.

6. Excavating or tunneling apparatus comprising in combination with the elements claimed in claim l, a frame carrying the body of the tool or cutter, a driving motor carried by said frame, members driven by said motor, and a member with which said members engage in order to move said frame along the guide rail.

' 7. Excavating or tunneling apparatusl as in claim 1, wherein means are provided for feeding the Atool or cutter forward as the work progresses. l

8. Excavating or tunneling apparatus as in Y claim l, wherein the body of the tool or cutter is movably carried by a'frame and means are provided for moving the said body forward upon the frame as the work progresses.

9, In excavating or tunneling apparatus, the combination with the elements claimed in claim l of an adjustable wedge device between therear part of the body of the tool or cutter and a supporting structure within the tunnel. 10. Excavating yor tunneling apparatus as inl claim 1, wherein the body of the tool or cutter is slidably disposed in a transverse hole in a trunnion which 'is vrotatably carried by a frame supported by the guide rail. y

v11. In excavating or tunneling apparatus1 the combination with the elements claimed in claim 1 of a frame supported by the guide rail, a trunnion rotatably carried by Ysaid frame, a transverse hole in said trunnion for slidably receiving the body of the tool or cutter, alpivoted platform carrying the body of the tool or cutter, and operating mechanism for the tool or cutter, said mechanism being carried by the pivoted platform.

12. In excavating or tunneling apparatus, the combination with the elements claimed. in claim l of a framesupported by the guide rail7 a trunnion rotatably carried by said frame, a

Vtransverse hole in saidtrunnion forvslidably receiving the body of the tool or cutter, a pivoted platform carrying the body ofthe tool or/cutter,"said trunnion being so disposed in relation tothe pivotal axis of the platform that'when the latter is swung about its pivot the tool or cutter will move in approximately a straight path parallel to the axis of the tunnel. f

,13. In excavating orV tunneling apparatus, Y

the combinationwith the elements claimed in claim 1 of a Vtrunnion'provided with a trans-.-

verse hole in which the body of the tool or cutter is slidably disposed, a frame which carries said trunnion and is supported by the guide rail',Y and a pivoted seat carried bysaid frame.

A WILLIAMA RUSSELL DEGENl-IARDT.

ALLAN FRED de FRAINE.

ifieaios 

